Ultimate Guide to Recording Meetings with Wave

Wave AI can capture a meeting four different ways. Which one you want depends on three things: whether a bot in the participant list is welcome, whether you'll even be in the meeting, and what platform the meeting runs on. Here's each method and when it's the right call.

One thing helps all four: connect your calendar. Whichever way you record, Wave uses the ongoing event's name to title the session and its attendee list to put names on speakers. Sending a bot is only one of the things a connected calendar makes possible.

1. Meeting bots (mobile app and web)

From the Wave mobile app or Wave for Web, Wave can send a bot that joins your Zoom, Google Meet, or Microsoft Teams call as a visible participant. It records the call, and you get a transcript and AI summary when the meeting ends. There are two ways to send one.

From your calendar. With a calendar connected, open the Calendar tab in the app or Calendar at app.wave.co. Each upcoming meeting has its own switch (Record this in the app, Wave will join on the web), or turn on Automatically record meetings (app) / Join every meeting automatically (web) and Wave joins every meeting that has a link. See recording calendar meetings.

From a link. Paste any Zoom, Meet, or Teams link and Wave sends a bot to that meeting, no calendar required. In the app, touch and hold the record button and choose Send meeting bot; on the web, click Record and choose Meeting bot. See recording any meeting by link.

The bot appears under the name you choose. Set a default for calendar meetings in Recording Settings (the sliders icon on the Calendar tab) → Name shown in meetings, or type a name each time you send a bot by link. If nobody admits it from the waiting room within about 10 minutes, it leaves.

Best for: meetings you can't attend, interviews, training sessions, and internal calls where recording is expected.

The tradeoff: everyone sees the bot in the participant list. That's a feature when recording is already standard practice, and a problem when it isn't.

2. The Wave desktop app (no bot)

Wave for Mac, Windows, and Linux records locally. It captures your microphone and your computer's System audio at the same time, so it gets both sides of any call playing through your speakers: Zoom, Meet, Teams, Webex, Slack huddles, a webinar, a YouTube video. No bot joins the meeting and nothing appears in the participant list.

Click Start recording before the call starts and Stop recording when you're done. You can add Notes and take a Screenshot of anything on screen while it runs, and both are saved with the session. If you've connected a calendar, the desktop app shows a prompt about two minutes before each event, with a Join meeting button that opens the call and starts recording on your computer, so you don't forget.

Best for: recording without changing how the meeting feels, platforms Wave's bot can't join, and one-on-ones where you want to stay present.

See Wave for Mac, Windows & Linux and desktop audio setup.

3. Phone dial-in

If the meeting has a dial-in number, place the call from the Keypad on the Phone tab of the Wave mobile app. The whole conversation is recorded and transcribed. Already on the call? Record a call you're already on rings you from the Wave Phone Bridge so you can merge the two calls and record from that point on.

Best for: conference bridges, remote interviews by phone, and any call that doesn't happen in a browser.

See recording phone calls with Wave.

4. Your phone in the room

For in-person meetings, open the Wave mobile app, tap the record button, and set your phone down. Wave records through the phone's microphone and transcribes it when you tap Finish.

Best for: in-person meetings, coffee chats, and anything happening in front of you.

Important: because it records through the microphone, you can't use it to capture a Zoom or Meet call running on that same phone. For virtual meetings, send a bot or use the desktop app instead. See recording on your phone.

Which one should you use?

Whichever you pick, the result is the same: the session lands in your library, transcribed and summarized, synced to every device you use Wave on, and searchable alongside everything else. Recording laws vary by state and country — make sure you have consent before you record.